Pittsburgh Pirates’ Ji-Man Choi (32) hit a game-winning RBI single in the bottom of the ninth inning to lift his team out of a losing streak.
Choi went 1-for-3 with a double, two RBIs, one walk and one run scored in the Pittsburgh Pirates’ 2023 Major League Baseball (MLB) home game against the Cleveland Cavaliers, batting fourth and starting at first base, at PNC Park in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S., on Tuesday.
He was quiet early in the game. In his first at-bat in the second inning and second at-bat in the fourth inning, he flied out to second base and left field, respectively.
In the sixth inning, he drew a walk but was stranded at the plate.
His big hit came in the bottom of the seventh inning, when, trailing 3-4, he drove in the game-winning run off left-hander Sam Hendges, the third pitcher he faced.
On a one-pitch, one-strike count, he pulled a sinking fastball up the middle and blasted a two-run shot to right field.
Choi’s game-winning hit was even more significant because it came against a left-handed pitcher.
As a left-handed hitter, Choi has long been a weakness against left-handed pitchers, often not getting a chance to play in games where a left-handed pitcher starts.
This put a lot of stress on him. In 2020, he even tried to transform himself into a switch-hitter.
His numbers against left-handed pitching have not been great this season either, with a batting average in the low teens, but on this day, 먹튀검증 he overcame his weaknesses to have a day to remember.
Pittsburgh scored five runs in the seventh inning to win 7-5 and snap a five-game losing streak, capitalizing on Choi’s game-winning hit.
Choi’s season batting average increased slightly from .173 to .182 (10-for-55).